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The United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a sovereign country in western Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, the UK includes the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands. Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state‍—‌the Republic of Ireland. Apart from this land border, the UK is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, with the North Sea to its east, the English Channel to its south and the Celtic Sea to its south-south-west, giving it the 12th-longest coastline in the world. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland. With an area of 242,500 square kilometers (93,600 sq mi), the UK is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world. It is also the 21st-most populous country, with an estimated 65.5 million inhabitants in 2016. The UK is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary democracy. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since 1952, making her the longest-serving current head of state. The UK's capital and largest city is London, a global city and financial center with an urban area population of 10.3 million. Other major urban areas in the UK include the conurbations centered on Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow and Liverpool. The UK consists of four countries—England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. All but England have devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in their capitals Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively. The nearby Isle of Man, Bailiwick of Guernsey and Bailiwick of Jersey are not part of the UK, being Crown dependencies with the British Government responsible for defense and international representation. Prior to the creation of the UK, Wales had been conquered and annexed by the Kingdom of England. This meant that the United Kingdom created in 1707 by the Treaty of Union between England and Scotland encompassed all of Great Britain. The Kingdom of Ireland merged with this state in 1801 to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.There are fourteen British Overseas Territories, the remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in the 1920s, encompassed almost a quarter of the world's land mass and was the largest empire in history. British influence can be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. English Leaders # Egbert 827 – 839 # Aethelwulf 839-856 # Aethelbald 856 – 860 # Aethelbert 860 – 866 # Aethelred I 866 – 871 # Alfred The Great 871 – 899 – son of Aethelwulf # Edward (The Elder) 899 – 924 # Athelstan 924 – 939 # Edmund 939 – 946 # Eadred 946 – 955 # Eadwig 955 – 959 # Edgar 959 – 975 # Edward The Martyr 975 – 978 # Aethelred II The Unready 978 – 1016 # Edmund II Ironside 1016 – 1016 # Canute The Dane 1016 – 1035 # Harold I 1035 – 1040 # Harthacanute 1040 – 1042 # Edward The Confessor 1042-1066 # Harold II 1066 # William I (The Conqueror) 1066- 1087 # William II (Rufus) 1087- 1100 # Henry I 1100-1135 # Stephen 1135-1154 # Henry II 1154-1189 # Richard I (The Lionheart) 1189 – 1199 # John 1199 -1216 # Henry III 1216 -1272 # Edward I 1272 – 1307 # Edward II 1307 – deposed 1327 # Edward III 1327 – 1377 # Richard II 1377 – deposed 1399 # Henry IV 1399 – 1413 # Henry V 1413 – 1422 # Henry VI 1422 – deposed 1461 Beginning of the Wars of the Roses # Edward IV 1461- 1483 # Edward V 1483 – 1483 # Richard III 1483 – 1485 End of the Wars of the Roses # Henry VII 1485 – 1509 # Henry VIII 1509 – 1547 # Edward VI 1547 – 1553 # Mary I (Bloody Mary) 1553 – 1558 # Elizabeth I 1558-1603 # James I and VI of Scotland 1603 -1625 # CHARLES 1 1625 – 1649 English Civil War # Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector 1653 – 1658 # Richard Cromwell, Lord Protector 1658 – 1659 # Charles II 1660 – 1685 # James II and VII of Scotland 1685 – 1688 # William III 1689 – 1702 and Mary II 1689 – 1694 # Anne 1702 – 1714 # George I 1714 -1727 # George II 1727 – 1760 # George III 1760 – 1820 # George IV 1820 – 1830 # William IV 1830 – 1837 # Victoria 1837 – 1901 # Edward VII 1901 – 1910 # George V 1910 – 1936 # Edward VIII June 1936 – abdicated December 1936 # George VI 1936 – 1952 # Elizabeth II 1952 –